Sunday, April 1, 2012

Tourist helicopter pilot Matthew Goodine, 28, was killed on Friday (March 30) when his helicopter crashed near Grotto Mountain. Four British tourists (two men and two women) were also aboard the chopper at the time of the crash, but survived the event.

According to The Calgary Sun, the cause of the crash is unclear, although some officials believe that bad weather may have been attributed to the helicopter going down.

COMMENT: The helicopter tour company, Kananaskis Mountain Helicopters (http://www.kmheli.com) operates a fleet of 11 turbine helicopters: Bell 206 and A-Star 350. On an annual basis the company hosts more than 12,000 passengers on helicopter tours.

Passengers were on a 20-minute sight-seeing flight that included a one-hour of snow-shoeing in the South Ghost area in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, when the crash occurred. It is not known what caused the helicopter to crash. The company is fully cooperating with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada who will commence an post-accident investigation.

Helicopter tours now cater to tourists worldwide, but that does not mean that they are risk-free. According to industry data, helicopter accidents occur ten times more frequently than do accidents involving fixed-wing aircraft.

About Me

I retired from the US State Department in April 2006, after a career as a special agent, Senior Regional Security Officer (SRSO), director of training, chief investigator of the Cyprus Missing Persons Program, director of security of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and as a senior adviser in the Office of Anti-Terrorism Assistance.
My book, STAYING SAFE ABROAD: TRAVELING, WORKING AND LIVING IN A POST-9/11 WORLD was published in May 2008.
A complete update of STAYING SAFE ABROAD 2015, will be release during early 2015 for the iPad, Kindle and Nook and other e-readers.
I am a former Federal Firearms Dealer (US), a certified NRA pistol instructor and a certified NRA Range Safety Officer.
My career has also included 15 years as an international security consultant; for ten years I served as the security adviser to the Inter-American Development Bank.
I additionally, served six years in the Marines, which included combat service in Vietnam.
I am available for operational assignments, lecturing opportunities and in providing security solutions anywhere in the world.